The Academy
by dispix94
Summary: A follow up to The Unexpected Hero. Nick's first day at the Zootopia Police Academy turns out to be worse than he had expected. Luckily, a phone call from a certain rabbit makes his day a little better.


The Academy

By: dispix94

 **AN: Hello, everyone! I'm back with another story. This will be another one-shot because, at the moment, I don't have time to write stories with more than one chapter. Anyways, I received some feedback for my last story,** _ **The Unexpected Hero,**_ **that said the reviewer was disappointed that I ended the story the way I did. I will not say who it was to protect his/her privacy, but if you are reading this, you know who you are, and once again, I'm sorry that you were disappointed. I hope this story makes up for it. Anyway, I thought about it for a while, and I began to agree with the reviewer. I mostly just ended the fic the way I did due to time restrictions (I had other things going on outside of Fanfiction, and I wanted to finish the story). But, as it turns out, I have more ideas for what happened after the end of** _ **The Unexpected Hero**_ **(go and read it if you are curious as to what I'm talking about). I was originally planning on including both this story and another idea I have for a future fic in the** _ **The Unexpected Hero**_ **, but, again, I decided to end the fic early, due to time reasons. So, as I promised some of you, here is a follow up to that story. Enjoy!**

 **PS: I do not own any of these characters, references, or settings. The characters and settings belong to The Walt Disney Company, and any products, brands, or other media/characters mentioned in this story belong to their respective owners.**

 **PPS: According to the Disney Wiki, the name of the polar bear that trains the recruits at the Academy is Major Friedkin. It didn't say what her first name is, though, but that won't matter for this story, anyway.**

Nick Wilde flopped down on his cot in the dorm room he was assigned to. He had just gone through over twelve hours of intense physical and mental training, and he was exhausted. Not to mention, every muscle in his body was throbbing, even ones that the fox never knew existed. And this was only Day 1. The fox reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. The time read 9:30 when he turned it on.

 _Wow, 14 hours,_ he thought. _I wonder if every day is going to be like this._ As Nick was checking his Muzzlebook feed, his thoughts traveled back to the events of the day. From the moment the fox set foot into the Academy building, he knew that Judy had been right. Just the atmosphere of the place alone gave Nick an uneasy feeling. The officers that checked him in and conducted the entry inspection were not ones for polite conversation, and were almost scary to Nick. It didn't help that one was a grizzly bear and the other was a cougar, two animals that could easily beat a smaller mammal like Nick to a pulp if he got on their bad sides. After being shown to his dorm room, he was only given half an hour to change into the standard uniform Academy trainees were required to wear before being ungracefully ushered out of the changing room and onto a field that looked to Nick like a combination of a high school football field and a prison yard (not that the fox had ever been to prison, he had just heard about it and seen it in movies and TV shows). The other recruits had been given an hour to change, but since Nick was one of the last to arrive, his time was shorter. Then, he and about fifteen or so other recruits were forced to undergo what was basically a really intense, fourteen hour workout, only stopping for water and meal breaks, which, even then, were too short for Nick. Once, after the half hour lunch break, Nick had complained that he had barely enough time to eat (which was partly true, as he had gotten caught up in a conversation with who he later learned was his roommate, a mouse by the name of Willie Cheeseman), only to be harshly reprimanded by the academy instructor, who, as Judy had warned, had no patience or tolerance for any mammal that disobeyed her or complained. So, as one can imagine, it had been a _very_ rough day for Nick. All he wanted to do was lay on his cot and rest for the next nine hours.

Thankfully, Willie was hanging out with their neighbors and making some new friends, so Nick didn't have to worry about talking to him. The mouse had invited the fox to join them, but Nick declined, not being in the mood to socialize with anyone. Just as Nick was about to turn out the lamp nearest his cot and get some sleep, his phone buzzed. The fox picked it up from where it was charging on the nightstand he and Willie shared, and glanced at who was calling.

 _Crap_ , thought Nick, panicking for a slight moment. _I forgot I was supposed to call her tonight!_

Nick immediately composed himself and answered the phone.

"Hey, Carrots. I was actually just about to call you." He hoped his rabbit friend wouldn't hear through his lie. He hated lying to Judy, but, in this case, he didn't want to offend her because he forgot to call her like he promised her he would.

To the fox's relief, the rabbit responded with her usual cheerful tone. "Hey, Slick. How's the Academy treating you?"

"Like heck," responded the fox honestly. "I'm so tired I could sleep for a week." He then told Judy of the intense training, short breaks, and the demanding instructor.

"Honestly, I don't know why that female even still works here," said Nick. He could hear Judy give a slight giggle on the other end of the phone.

The fox thought for a moment, then said to Judy, "But, I did manage to make a friend or two today." He then told Judy about Willie, and a few other recruits he had met earlier, including a bobcat and rabbit he had met at lunch, a panda he had met at dinner, and a tiger that he was originally afraid of, but ended up becoming friends with her after they were partnered together for a training exercise.

"That's great to hear," said Judy.

"So, how's life at the ZPD," asked Nick after another slight pause. "Is everyone anxiously anticipating my arrival?"

"Actually, no one really talks about it. I don't think anyone other than Bogo and Clawhauser knows or cares. Although, Ben did ask about you today."

"Tell him I said hi and that I'm doing the best I can."

"So, do you want me to tell him you got kicked in the shin by a chipmunk?" Nick could hear Judy trying not to laugh.

"Uh, no," the fox responded flatly. "I'd rather not be known as the fox cop that got beat by a tiny rodent."

"I think that title would suit you. It has a nice ring to it," Judy quipped.

"Okay, now you're just being mean."

"Whatever you say Officer Weakling."

"Hey! That's not funny! The guy snuck up on me! It's not my fault he was so tiny!"

"Easy there, Slick. I'm just messing with you."

There was another pause. Nick waited a few moments, hoping Judy would think she got to him unintentionally. Sure enough, after a few minutes, she asked, worriedly, "Nick, are you okay? I shouldn't have said that. I-"

Before the rabbit could finish, the fox burst out laughing.

"I can't believe you fell for that," exclaimed Nick, trying to catch his breath.

"Sly fox."

"Dumb bunny."

There was a pause as Nick composed himself. Then, he asked, "So, what else have you been up to within the past 24 hours?" Judy then told him about her day, her loud neighbors, and the long commute she had to endure on her way to work that morning. Nick just listened, enjoying listening to his friend's stories. A nice talk with his best friend was just what he needed after a long and intense day. The fox was disappointed when their call ended, due to the two having to go to bed at a decent time in preparation for the busyness of the next day for both of them. Luckily for him, though, Judy had promised to call every night until Nick graduated in a few months from now, which gave him something to look forward to every night. As Nick turned out his lamp, he smiled to himself. _Maybe these next few months won't be so bad, after all_ ," he thought as he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

For the next few months, training had become easier and easier for Nick. He soon adjusted to the early mornings and short breaks, and even began socializing with Willie and the other recruits a bit more. Once a week, he checked in with his friend and former coworker Finnick, who was still successfully running their "business" and anticipated his younger friend's return. All of that, combined with his nightly calls with Judy, were what motivated him to eventually graduate as one of the top recruits in his class and become the successful mammal he never imagined he would become.

 **AN: Well, that's the story for you. I hope you all liked it and that it wasn't too short. If it was, a follow up to this story that will also serve as a second follow up to** _ **The Unexpected Hero**_ **is coming, so stay tuned. In the meantime, remember to read and review! Until next time, readers!**


End file.
